Jenson Button Has Been Given A Grid Penalty For His Next Race

Jenson Button spent much of the Monaco Grand Prix stuck behind Pascal Wehrlein. When he finally tried a move at Portier it went horribly wrong, leaving the Sauber propped up against the barriers and putting Button out of his final race.

It was a slightly clumsy attempt at a pass (then again, isn’t every overtake at Monaco a bit clumsy?) so naturally the stewards had to investigate it.

Button's final race didn't end the way he would have wanted

The stewards decided that Button was at fault, and in what must surely be the most pointless penalty in F1 history have given him a three place grid penalty for the next race. Errrm… did they forget that this was his last race or what?

It’s not like an engine penalty either (which is applied to the car rather than the driver) so Fernando Alonso won’t have to serve it when he returns to F1 for the next race in Montreal.

Retiring from F1 to avoid a penalty. It’s an extreme tactic, Jenson, but it’s effective!